Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2000/10/13
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]You're right on a couple of fronts. The M-Hexanon is a a stellar lens that rarely sells for more that $330 on Ebay. I have not yet seen the review that gives the current 50/2 Summicron an edge over it. It is also designed to have a pleasant look, photographically speaking. It is marginally larger (a couple mm wider) than the summicron, which gives it a feel that helps if you were an SLR user in a former life. As far as the refurbishment, you have to look down the road. $265 from DAG for a CLA makes all of those cheap M2s and M3s look a little more expensive. That means it will be 12 years before you need service, max. On a 20-year life (if you don't encounter an irreplaceable parts problem - like a M3 finder), it will cost $500-600 in maintenance alone. A 4-year old M6 won't pose any type of parts problem, and the long-term cost should be half that. All of this assumes that in 20 years all of the current Leica specialists will not have retired. If they have, and Leica is still around, that will mean 4 months to get your camera fixed. If you are looking at an eventual 35/2, 50/2 and 90/2.8 package, and a small increase in noise (balanced against a bunch of modern features) doesn't both you, the Hexar RF is a very attractive vehicle with better eye relief. You can use it with an 85/2 or 90/2, but it is faster with a 2.8. And you can buy the body or the package relatively inexpensively. It works marvellously with a 35/2 Summicron. Jeff S wrote: > Kim, if you can get a nice M6 for $1250 or less, I'd say that's the way > to go. Add to that a 50/2 Hexar lens (~$300 or so) and you are set with > an essentially modern package with the latest lens coatings. > Alternately, consider the complete Konica Hexar RF packages which are > regularly offered on eBay. > > I like older Leica cameras too, but when all is said and done, I'm not > convinced that they're always the best, most rational buys out there. > Older cameras may need a good deal of refurbishing and this can be > expensive, but some of us do it anyway, not because it makes great > economic sense, but because we like the camera. > > Jeff Segawa > NO ARCHIVE > > Teresa299@aol.com wrote: > > > > Any suggestions folks have for favourite bodies and lenses are most welcome. > > Other considerations I should take into account are welcome too.